Le Cléac'h strikes hard

Looking at his young rival, Loick identifies all the qualities he values the most in a sailor - tactical wisdom, gear preservation, competitiveness, and respect for his rivals. Having admitted to feeling Armel's pressure for the last two days at sea, the triple winner implicitly paid him a tribute, and the "young Jackal", using his Figaro-era nickname, probably appreciated the fact that the "old fox" considered him a threat. 

Once the ever-elegant Loick Peyron had finished answering the questions from the press, and left for his appointment with a nice big steak and a beer, it was time for everyone to wait for Armel and his faithful Brit Air, the white and gold monohull expected to tear through the Bostonian night some four hours after the winner.

Having left Plymouth Sutton Harbour with the sole ambition - or so he said - to finish the race in order to guarantee his Vendée Globe qualification, Armel obviously got trapped into the game he likes most, and his rankings certainly betrayed a very competitive state of mind. "I guess given the mild conditions," said his brother Gael (project manager for the Brit Air Open 60), "he felt he could put on a fight and remain safe. You don't end up in the leading pack if you race with the handbrake on...not in this class and with the level of his opponents! Unless he was taking it easy, in which case we can envisage the future with serenity!"

Two generations of sailors, two different schools, but a common tactical finesse and sense of limits: the perfect ingredients for a spectacular finale, spiced up by weather conditions that seemed to dictate a coastal closing phase. Playing it by the book and applying typical match racing tactics, Loick Peyron controlled his opponent by making a critical tack two days ago. Closing the door, Loick was buying some safety but could not expect what happened when approaching Boston, thunderstorms suddenly kicked in that could have changed the whole game. "At one point," said the winner, "I was completely stopped, surrounded by squalls with absolutely no wind whatsoever. It was tense until the last minute."



Yann Elies looking forward to completing the podium:
"I have a good feeling for sure to be able to be on the podium. I am really happy about this boat and it will be the second Finot Conq boat to be on the podium. I am happy for that and for the designer to have two boats in the top three. I have some wind NW 15 knots with boat speed of 12 knots - it is very cold, I have put my heater on! I should reach Boston in about 10 hours time [approx 1930 GMT]." The game is still on for the remaining IMOCA 60 fleet - Marc Guillemot on Safran climbed far north before tacking back south in the night heading for Boston with 344 miles to go - he expects to arrive tomorrow evening. A tiring night for Sam Davies, back into 5th place on Roxy, who also headed north but was forced to put in a couple of extra tiring tacks after mistiming her tack south. For Dee Caffari on Aviva it was "a frustrating and rubbish day. No consistent breeze, I struggled all day against rain clouds, adverse current and fatigue. There is certainly no fear in my mind that the last few miles are going to be the toughest. With the talk of finishers, it makes Boston seem further away especially when sat in rain and no wind while your closest competitors sail away from you." Both Sam and Dee are expected to arrive in Boston on Monday, 26th May.

From Armel Le Cléac'h dockside at Rowes Wharf, Boston Harbor Hotel:
"I'm very happy with the way this race turned out, it was a close fight, especially with Loick but also with all the other guys, and a lot of credit goes to the team who's worked very hard for us to be on the startline. Finishing second in such a mythical race is fantastic for me, and on top of it all we have our ticket for the Vendée Globe!

"I sailed without putting too much strain on the boat, I played it safe but as time went by I felt more at ease, more accurate in my trimmings and understanding of the boat, so I became faster and more confident. But at times, I really did slow down - particularly 48 hours before the finish, when the gale hit us. At one point I had three reefs in the main and no foresail, it showed in the morning position update, some guys had clearly been faster, but I managed to stay in contact. I was shocked to hear about Vincent being forced to abandon his boat, it was probably the toughest moment in the race.

"Off the South of Nova Scotia, I thought there might be a possibility for me to make a move on Loick, but the further I got North, the less wind I had. Then he tacked in a shift, and it was pretty much done. I'm honoured to take the second place behind him, for me he's the best sailor in the world and being here right behind him is just tremendous."